Previewing the 2011 Aggie Invitational
Apr 12, 2011 | Men's Golf
April 12, 2011
BRYAN, Texas -
UP NEXT: The sixth-ranked Texas A&M men's golf team will host the fifth edition of the Aggie Invitational on Saturday and Sunday (April 16 and 17) at Traditions Club in Bryan ... the tournament will consist of two rounds on Saturday with the final round set for Sunday ... teams will tee off from the 1st and 10th holes on both days starting at 7:30 a.m. ... admission is free.
LIVE SCORING/UPDATES: Fans can follow the action online at www.golfstat.com ... links will be available at aggieathletics.com ... updates and photos can also be found through twitter at @AggieInvite and @AggieMensGolf.
COURSE: Traditions (opened 2004) will be set up to play at par-72, 7,146 yards ... for those familiar with Traditions Club, hole No. 8 will serve as the first hole for this weekend's action, hole No. 9 as the second hole, hole No. 1 as the third hole, and so on ... the back 9 will remain the same as usual.
FORMAT: 54 holes, stroke play ... each team will play six and count five scores ... a team champion and medalist will be crowned following competition.
THE FIELD (11 teams)/POLL RANKINGS:
Golfweek/Sagarin (April 11): Oklahoma State (1), Texas A&M (6), Texas (8), Texas Tech (16), Oklahoma (24), Baylor, Kent State, New Mexico, SMU, Tulsa, UTSA.
Golf World/Nike Golf (April 6): Oklahoma State (1), Texas A&M (9), Texas (12), Texas Tech (20), Oklahoma (RV), Tulsa (RV), Baylor, Kent State, New Mexico, SMU, UTSA.
Golfstat Cup (April 6): Oklahoma State (1), Texas A&M (10), Texas (12), Texas Tech (18), Baylor, Kent State, New Mexico, Oklahoma, SMU, Tulsa, UTSA.
PAIRINGS: The sixth-ranked Aggies will be paired with No. 1 Oklahoma State and No. 8 Texas for Saturday's first two rounds ... tee times will start at 7:30 a.m. on Hole No. 1 ... other pairings include Oklahoma, Kent State and individual participants (including three A&M players) at 7:30 a.m. from the 10th hole; New Mexico, Baylor and UTSA at 8:24 a.m. from the first hole; and Texas Tech, Tulsa and SMU at 8:24 a.m. from the 10th hole.
TOURNAMENT NOTES: This year marks the fifth Aggie Invitational ... Texas A&M is the defending champion after shooting a record 38-under par last spring en route to a 21-shot victory ... Oklahoma State has won a pair of team crowns (2005 and 2009), while Texas Tech took the title in 2006 ... individual champions for the tournament include: Anthony Kim of Oklahoma and Spencer Levin of New Mexico (2005); Oscar Floren of Texas Tech (2006); Rickie Fowler of Oklahoma State (2009); and Jordan Russell of Texas A&M (2010). Kim, Levin and Fowler are current members of the PGA Tour.
INDIVIDUAL FIELD NOTES: A total of 18 golfers participating in the Aggie Invitational appear in the latest Golfweek/Sagarin Rankings, including the nation's top-ranked player, Peter Uihlein of Oklahoma State ... Uihlein won the U.S. Amateur earlier this year and played in The Masters last weekend in Augusta ... other ranked players in this year's field include Kevin Tway of OSU (4), Morgan Hoffman of OSU (15), Nils Floren of Texas Tech (16), Jordan Russell of Texas A&M (18), Matt Smith of Texas Tech (25), John Hahn of Kent State (39), Nacho Elvira of A&M (44), Bobby Hudson of Texas (51), Dylan Frittelli of Texas (56), Drew Page of OSU (59), Conrad Shindler of A&M (60), Cody Gribble of Texas (76), Joakim Mikkelsen of Baylor (79), Julio Vegas of Texas (89), Talor Gooch of OSU (94) and Cameron Peck of A&M (96).
WEATHER: Saturday's forecast calls for sunny skies and a high of 79 ... Sunday's forecast calls for sunny and breezy conditions with a high near 80.
TEXAS A&M LINEUP: TBA
TEXAS A&M SCORING AVERAGES: Jordan Russell (Jr., 29 rounds, 71.3 average) ... Nacho Elvira (Sr., 21, 72.1) ... Conrad Shindler (Sr., 23, 72.4) ... Cameron Peck (So., 26, 72.8) ... John Hurley (Sr., 17, 73.2) ... Case Cochran (So., 17, 74.1) ... Geoff Shaw (Jr., 8, 74.5) ... Bryant Lach (Sr., 3, 82.0).
LAST TIME OUT: The Texas A&M men's golf team finished in a tie for fifth place at the Hootie at Bulls Bay Intercollegiate at Bulls Bay Golf Club in Awendaw, S.C. The Aggies (282-288-286) completed the tournament at 4-over 856, seven shots back of the champion, No. 12 LSU (849, -3). A&M has finished fifth or better in every tournament this season. Defending national champion and No. 9-ranked Augusta State (-2) was one shot back in second and the only other team to break par on the week, while No. 6 Auburn (+3) and No. 23 Duke (+3) tied for third. Senior Nacho Elvira recorded his third top-10 finish of the year, placing seventh with a 2-under 211 (71-68-72). Elvira was four shots back of medalists Mitchell Sutton of N.C. State and Andrew Loupe of LSU (207, -6).
LAST YEAR'S RECAP:
BRYAN, Texas (April 18, 2010)--The Texas A&M men's golf team grabbed five of the top six individual places as the No. 4 Aggies rolled to a 21-shot victory at the Aggie Invitational on Sunday at the Traditions Club Golf Course.
The 2010 Aggie Invitational, which included top-ranked Oklahoma State and top 25 squads Texas, Texas Tech and TCU in its field, was billed as tuneup for next week's Big 12 Championships at Whispering Pines Golf Course in Trinity, Texas.
Asked what his team's dominating victory meant, A&M head golf coach J.T. Higgins said, "I think it means that we're really good on this golf course. I hope it also means that we're going to be really good at Whispering Pines next week."
Led by individual champion Jordan Russell's final round 67, the Aggies carded a 15-under par 345 that moved the team to an impressive 38-under for the tournament. The Aggies' three rounds of 346, 351 and 345 marked the three lowest scores of the tournament. The Aggies were trailed by top-ranked Oklahoma State (-17), No. 14 Texas Tech (-13), San Diego State (+7), No. 7 Texas (+12), No. 24 TCU (+14), Baylor (+15), New Mexico (+16), SMU (+20), Kent State (+25), Colorado (+30) and UTSA (+53).
"This was a great field of teams, and there were some fantastic players here," Aggie golf coach J.T. Higgins said. "So for our guys to play this well, and all of them at the same time is a huge accomplishment."
Russell, a sophomore from A&M Consolidated in College Station, grabbed the first victory of his career. Russell finished the tournament at 10-under par with rounds of 70-69-67 as he held off teammate Geoff Shaw for a one-stroke victory.
"It was fun to play at home in front of everybody," Russell said. "I was focused on trying to avoid mistakes and helping the team as much as I could, and I ended up playing pretty well. It was fun. All my friends that I went to high school with were out here. My whole family was out here. That was fun, and it's fun to play well."
Russell took the lead for good with an eagle on the par-five 15th hole, and then turned in pars on holes 16-18 for the win. Russell offset his lone bogey of the day with four birdies and an eagle.
"I know how much he's put into this and how hard he's worked, so I know it's pretty special for him to win it on his home course in front of his home crowd," Higgins said. "The roar when he made the eagle on 15 was loud. When I heard it I thought it sounded like a pro tournament and someone had just made a birdie for a million bucks."
Shaw, a sophomore from Edmond, Okla., had a share of the individual lead going into the final round, but his three-under 69 wasn't enough to hold off Russell. Shaw ended up in second-place at nine-under (67-71-69). Juniors Nacho Elvira and Andrea Pavan tied for sixth at five-under with rounds of 70-71-70. Freshman Cameron Peck tied for 15th at two-under with rounds of 69-72-73.
Playing as individuals for the Aggies were: freshman Case Cochran (t29th, 72-70-76, +2), junior John Hurley (t29th, 75-69-74, +2), junior Bryant Lach (61st, 80-75-74, +13), freshman Drew Evans (77th, 83-79-79, +25).
